Religion is one of the most pervasive and central topics in society. However, its relative neglect by entrepreneurship research leads to an insufficient understanding of entrepreneurial action. Read the academic article here from The Journal of Business Venturing Insights.

Theology of Work Project digs into a famous parable —“One of Jesus’ most significant parables regarding work is set in the context of investments (Matt. 25:14-30). A rich man delegates the management of his wealth to his servants, much as investors in today’s markets do.”

“There are other ways of writing about the stages of business development. I’ve done it myself, but I find quantifying it in this way—0 to 1, 1 to 5, and 5 to 50—makes sense to a lot of my clients. It works in any industry, any style of corporate culture, and every market I can think of.”

Originally published by Fast Company— Corrie Conrad, Head of Social Impact at Sephora, shares about Sephora Stands Together (financial support to Sephora employees), Classes For Confidence (workshops for women trying to reenter the workforce) and Sephora Accelerate, its startup incubator.

Tim Macready, Chief Investment Officer at Christian Super, shares how the superannuation pension fund is on a journey of applying God’s Word to the way they, as Christian professionals, invest their beneficiaries’ assets. This includes learning to be better stewards of creation, looking for ways to promote human flourishing, and seeking to be redemptive in all that they do.

BEST OF SECTION

Today we feature a sermon from FDE Podcast Co-Host Rusty Rueff. https://subsplash.com/cornerstonetv/lb/mi/+vs34rmpPlease do consider what your Superpower is, and how often you tap in to it. With that knowledge you too might be used by God to do amazing things…for Him while experiencing His joy in doing so.

These are all time classic sermons that have nothing, at face value, to do with entrepreneurship, and then upon reflection… everything to do with the life of a Christ following entrepreneur. John Piper wants more than any others I know, to make sure that we don’t miss the centrality of the Good News. Try to stick around for the whole thing. The last 15 minutes are, I think, a thing of beauty.

Take a listen to this sermon by Toby Kurth at Christ Church San Francisco for a check on your motivations. This message isn’t necessarily about being an entrepreneur, but is very much about being a follower of Christ, and so it has everything to do with being a FAITH DRIVEN entrepreneur.

FDE podcast host and contributor, Rusty Rueff, writes a daily devotional on his thoughts regarding faith in the workplace. Today we share a post that originally appeared on Rusty’s blog site Purposed worKING. Rusty reminds us of our inheritance as Christ followers and our call to faith in our work.

The beauty of the Gospel is that it can be understood by a child at the same time that the wisest of people can spend their entire lives plumbing the depths of God's wisdom and knowledge and get nowhere close.

Two months ago, I woke up as lead pastor of Christ Community—a church I helped plant in 2011 with two of my closest friends. This morning I woke up as COO of FarmAfield—an ag tech company that is using software to create new connections between farmers and investors. At first glance, these may seem like two very different ventures and, in many ways, they are. At Christ Community, I spent my days preparing sermons, counseling congregants, and officiating weddings. In my new role at FarmAfield, I spend my time pitching investors, interviewing customers, and helping to develop software. The differences are so stark that even I wondered how much I’d be able to draw from the former as I engaged in the latter.

But it wasn’t long into my time with FarmAfield that some old, very familiar doubts came rushing back:

If you spend any time browsing through the titles of Tim Keller's sermons, you'd think that he rarely talks about faith in the workplace. However, spend some time listening to his sermons (on the Gospel in Life podcast among other sources) and you'll find that he talks about faith and work quite a bit. His sermon, "A World of Idols" is a great example of this.

I have listened to Tim Keller thousands of times. Literally. Tim started accompanying me on runs 20 years ago. He always kept up, and never seemed to break a sweat. I’m not sure Tim made me a faster runner (in fact, I’m sure the opposite….he can’t hold a candle to a good house music track IMO for running negative splits), but I’m sure he has made me a better follower of Christ and since my competitive running days are long gone, I’ll take that trade every day.

Every once in a while I (HK) will highlight a sermon that I think is especially good and helpful for the entrepreneurial journey, but without any mention of being a business owner per se. This work from Toby Kurth is one of those. From time to time we need a message that brings us radically back to the faith that we have and that makes the “faith” part of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur.

Rick Rock is an entrepreneur. Together with some partners, he started and owns a money management firm with offices in 3 cities and more than $3B under management. Rick is also an elder in his church and over the last several years has started preaching more and more. He talks about his faith, family and work.

How can you worship God through your work? CEO and Founder of Hobby Lobby, David Green, shares how he uses his God-given talents and resources in business to enlarge God's kingdom and to serve his employees and customers.

Please enjoy some of the great content from our friends at Theology of Work, originally published on their website. TOW Project resources are meant to be both theologically rigorous and genuinely practical. In this article, they share “10 Key Points About Work in the Bible That Every Christian Should Know.”

From the LeTourneau Center for Faith and Work, we hear Camcraft’s view of their business in manufacturing high-precision machined components as a gift to them from God, and they see themselves as merely stewards of the business.

This week’s guest is Alan Barnhart of Barnhart Crane and Rigging of Memphis, TN. Originally a small family business started by his parents, Alan and his brother, Eric, grew the company into one of the largest Heavy Lift and Heavy Transport organization in the United States with 1,000 team members in more than 40 locations across the country and a nationwide reputation for solving problems (Even if it means building a 200+ wheel truck!).

On this episode, the team spends time with Andy Crouch, partner for theology and culture at Praxis, an organization that works as a creative engine for redemptive entrepreneurship, as well as an accomplished writer and journalist, having authored several books as well as articles published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Time Magazine.

On today’s episode, we’re on the road connecting with Bryant Ambelang, President and CEO of NatureSweet, the largest greenhouse producer of tomatoes in North America. Bryant shares with us the ways he has cared for his employees by doing a better job of connecting their purpose and passions to their work.

We find the team chatting with Julie Barrios, of Nuos Formation, a spiritual formation enterprise focused on helping the entrepreneur develop healthy inner lives as part of purposeful living as a faith-driven entrepreneur.

In Part Two with David Morken, the team discusses more thoroughly about what it means to be mission ready both individually and corporately. David talks about the importance of obedience to God and avoiding the pitfalls of both willfulness and passivity and Henry leads the discussion into practical applications of how their company’s HR policies intentionally reflected kingdom values as they target the whole person for impact.

The team spends some time with the students and teachers from Entrepreneur Program and Valley Christian School (VCS) in San Jose, CA. Spearheaded by Hannah and Danny Kim, entrepreneurs in their own right, the program has launched high school students into the world of entrepreneurship in the midst of a community invested in seeing biblical values and principles impacting the world.

In this week’s podcast, the team answers a few of your questions around profit making and taking as well as consumerism. One Bay Area listener shares his struggles with being in what he believes is a money-driven industry.

Religion is one of the most pervasive and central topics in society. However, its relative neglect by entrepreneurship research leads to an insufficient understanding of entrepreneurial action. Read the academic article here from The Journal of Business Venturing Insights.

Rick Goossen, Chairman of Entrepreneurial Leaders Organization (ELO) Network, discusses “There are virtually no ‘Christians’ left in North America. Where have they all gone? How did it become so complicated to be called a Christian? Does it matter?”

It's not often that an article intrigues me the way Anthony Bradley's recent piece in Fathom did. His major point of many of us not having a complete view of the Gospel and restoration of God's Kingdom has very real ramifications for us as entrepreneurs, even though at face level this is a post about racial reconciliation in the Church.

Wes Willmer builds us up in his piece: How do we see work and earning in the bigger picture of our Christian faith? He reveals that increasing our impact is not about earning more money, but that it happens when we acknowledge our place in God’s work, when we know ourselves, and when we understand how God views money.

In this episode we’re just outside of Chicago connecting with Phil Vischer, the visionary, creative who founded Veggietales. To date it's the most popular direct to DVD series of all time with more than 65 million copies sold. It led to feature films, Netflix Original series and became a cultural icon.

Occasionally we like to spotlight some things in culture that while they might not fit in the defined box of entrepreneurship they speak truth to the same concepts we face. As we look back at the Final Four and the end to March Madness we couldn't help but share the story of Josh Langford, the stand out guard from Michigan State.

On this episode, the team spends time with Andy Crouch, partner for theology and culture at Praxis, an organization that works as a creative engine for redemptive entrepreneurship, as well as an accomplished writer and journalist, having authored several books as well as articles published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Time Magazine.

“What really motivates us as entrepreneurs? … The freedom for the faith-driven entrepreneur is that in Christ, all the work is finally finished. Our work, then, is simply to listen, obey, and to tend the vine given to us. And when it grows, to marvel at the handiwork of the Gardener. “

This “Prayer for Entrepreneurs” was shared with us by Missy Wallace whose church, Christ Presbyterian Church, often leads vocational prayers for its members and wider community in Nashville. In this prayer, its words ring true for entrepreneurs everywhere. Be blessed!